


Reverse the Dusting

by rosebird612



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Fluff and Angst, Heavy Angst, Outer Space, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Protective Bruce, Rings of Power, Space Adventure!, bro-friend bruce and thor, but not much :(, rocket is a crack with Too Much Power, spooky avengers hijinks, thor is a normal person and doesn't speak like an idiot
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-08
Updated: 2019-07-04
Packaged: 2019-10-24 08:22:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,847
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17700839
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rosebird612/pseuds/rosebird612
Summary: There was some writing prompt somewhere saying something about the One Ring saving the day in the A:IW (and a work on here I think) but I don't think I'll ever find it and I thought it'd be more fun if it was the Rings of Power and also Maglor is their Sad Boy guide. Expect plentiful short chapters.Thor has a bright idea that leads to more smart ideas and an assembled crew fly off into space in search for Alfheim.





	1. The Beginning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thor gets an idea.

Thor thought this would be it. The end.

He'd grown up with the stories of Ragnarok and the end of it all, but he thought Ragnarok had happened already, because Asgard had fallen. But here he was, on Midgard, half the population of the universe wiped out and grief he'd never felt before filling him.

Most of the original team was here; Thor, Steve, Nat, Bruce, even Clint. But Tony was nowhere to be found. A week had passed since the Dusting, so Thor was looking for clues of where he might be everywhere. He thought he remembered someone saying they'd seen him on the news, flying up to the alien craft that'd landed in New York, but Thor couldn't remember where he'd heard it from in all the commotion.

He wished he had a secret weapon, something  _better_  than Stormbreaker. But nothing came to mind. He was too tired, too grieved. Loki would've had an idea at that moment. Chaos energized him.

Thor took a nap. He needed it. 

—————————

When he woke, there was yelling all around him. He shot to his feet, reaching for Stormbreaker, an old instinct. Then he saw what it was all about, and set off at a run in the same direction as everyone else.

"Clear the way!" Nat was shouting. She was the one carrying him, all curled up in her arms. Wakandan doctors were peering over her shoulder and fluttering about, and behind them all was a blue woman, a cyborg of some sort.

"Natasha," Thor called, running with her back inside the building. "What happened?"

She glanced at him, then back down at the figure in her arms. "Stark came back."

Thor lost them from there, being too overrun with the crowd. He hung back at a distance, obviously relieved by the return of their good friend but now fearful of what to come. Stark hadn't looked alive. In fact, he looked quite dead. Thor could only hope it was better than it looked.

—————————

Ten hours later, after a fitful nap, chugging two coffees, and a quick run just around the floor he was staying on in the Wakandan palace, Thor had a realization. Just the realization he'd been searching for.  _Exactly_ the realization.

As a child, he remembered his father's stories of Thor's grandfather - Bor - and his adventures around the Realms. One of which included the wars on Alfheim. It extended far longer than any of the wars Thor had heard about in his extensive knowledge of inter-galactic history and was far bloodier than any other. Thor had kept that mistrust of elves well into his adult life. They were greedy, power-hungry, hostile, and not as wise as they claim to be.

The reason he knew this was important was that those legends and histories had not stayed isolated on Alfheim. In fact, the elves - some of them, the colonists - had moved to Midgard; their "Middle-Earth". And he knew one of them had been a historian, and that historian had passed on their history to a human. And those histories were now famous. Popular culture to the humans. The answer had been right under his nose all this time, and he hadn't even noticed.

Among the action that came with Tony's return to them (he seemed far more distraught than the rest of them; they'd lost family and friends, but Tony had finally cracked and broken open), Thor found that Bruce and his rabbit-friend were hopelessly bored and fretful. No one wanted to stop moving, stop working, to ensure they didn't think about everything they'd lost. That was universal. Even Shuri, as young as she was, was off meeting with other world leaders to examine how serious the damage was.

"Bruce," Thor said, knocking on the doorframe to the workshop Bruce had been given free-reign of. "You busy?"

Of course he wasn't busy, that was a stupid thing to ask. But Bruce shook his head wordlessly anyway, turning in his swivel chair and setting down his glasses. "No. What's up?"

Thor shifted on his feet and roughed his hands together. Ever since the catastrophe, he hadn't been able to stay still. "There's something I want to... do. I don't know if it can fix this yet. But we could have a chance to..."

Rocket, who'd been tinkering with something that was sending sparks flying, lifted his furry head to consider them. "...Defeat Thanos?" He scoffed, sour-toned as always. "You missed that boat, big guy. Like, a lot."

"I- I know." Thor shrugged. "But I have a feeling I'm missing something. Something my father mentioned years ago."

He had missed it, and that in itself would tear Thor apart if he thought about it any more. He'd gone to the dwarves, he'd forged Stormbreaker, and still that hadn't been enough to stop that disgusting wrinkled grape of a man. It was up to Thor to end his reign of terror, as the King of Asgard and the Ruler of the Nine Realms, and he'd fucked up. Big time. The universe was in a frenzy, it's people cut in half, so many dead drifting by, mere dust motes in the wind. He'd been too late. But if there was one thing Thor could do, it was coming back from failure and loss.

"I know what I need to do," Thor started again. The two pairs of eyes were still on him, staring, just a shred of hope left. They wanted him to say he could fix everything, that no one was really lost. But he didn't know if he could. "But I have to talk to Stark. I don't know enough about those wizards - he might. He spent some time with the Strange fellow."

"Wizards?" Bruce stood from his chair and shook his head in worry. "Thor, I know you want to fix this, but- you're exhausted, we all are. Get some rest and we can think about this later."

"Oh, you know they exist, don't play games with me!" Thor moved back before Bruce could place a hand on his shoulder. "I met them, you met them, you know their order has more information than we do, more than anyone on this planet does. And I need information. So unless you have a better plan -"

"No," Bruce cut him off. "I don't. I'm sorry. Where to?"

"The Iron Guy, you said?" Rocket hopped down off the table, noticed he was still holding a screwdriver, and tossed it back up onto the table. The sparking thing let out a low hissing noise as it was hit with the screwdriver. "Oops. Show the way, then, Thunder Man."

—————————

Tony, Thor thought, may have actually been broken once and for all.

He'd returned with severe and painful internal wounds, and only Nebula had been able to explain what happened, how he'd been impaled straight through with his own weapon and Strange's immediate response of giving up the Time stone. It was upsetting, to say the least, and even Nebula had looked saddened by it. Her usual robotic facade dropped as she glanced at Tony's unmoving body in the white hospital bed. Wakandan medicine worked quick, but could only fix the wound on the physical body. Thor didn't know if he could get through to him.

This time, Tony was awake and sitting upright. It had been ten hours since he'd gotten back, after all, and Thor guessed he must have been healed significantly enough to be able to stay awake. Rhodes sat in a chair beside his bed, talking endlessly about nothing. Thor didn't like the look in Tony's eyes. There was nothing there. An absence of emotion.

"Hey, guys." Rhodey looked up, hearing their entrance, and managed a weak smile. "Uh- if you're here to-"

"We're here to talk to Tony, yeah." Bruce scratched his neck awkwardly and stepped forwards. Surprisingly, Tony looked up from his lap and met Bruce's gaze. His clouded eyes shifted somewhat, but even with Thor's centuries more experience in body language, he couldn't figure out what it meant.

"You're here," Tony started. It was the first time he'd spoken since he got back, and his voice was a shattered, grinding thing. "To talk about what happened."

Thor shook his head,  _no_ , and grabbed a chair to sit at the end of his bed. It felt less menacing than standing. "I don't want to talk about that. And I don't want you to think about it, really. I just need information about Strange, about the wizards. Do you know how I can..."

He trailed off. Tony puffed out something resembling a sob and broke his eye contact to look back at his lap. His hands were clasped tightly together, knuckles white, and his shoulders trembled. "God," He croaked. "It was fucking me."

Thor didn't want to know what he meant by that. Well, he did, he wasn't insane. Of course he was curious. But he wanted to keep Tony from breaking down right there, so he stood again to get his attention and moved his chair closer. He sat when Tony looked back up at him, cloudy-eyed and shaking.

"I just want to know how to contact those wizards." Thor had dropped his tone low, careful, to prevent any other sobs. "I think I may have a way to stop Thanos."

"Doesn't matter." Tony shook his head, incredulous. "Are you  _trying_ to rub it in? It's over, it's done, everyone's dust. There's nothing to stop, Thor, he won. He won."

He broke down again, head buried in his hand, and hurriedly Rhodey stood, the mechanics of his legs whirring. "I think it's best if you..." He didn't need to finish. Thor nodded, turned, and wrapped an arm around Bruce's shoulders. They'd find information elsewhere.

"Wong."

Thor paused. "Tony?" He said, turning. Tony hadn't moved from his position, but he  _had_  talked.

"Wong," He repeated. "That was Strange's friend. A wizard or something." His voice was fading, weak and tired. "If he's still... he'll be on 177 A Bleecker Street."

Thor breathed out in relief. A lead. "Thank you, Tony. Really. Thank you. Now rest."

Thor didn't leave until he saw that Tony was resting back, eyes closed. Rhodes sent a half-hearted smile and the three left the room behind, focusing instead on what was in front of them.


	2. The Stranger at the Sanctum

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Self-explanatory - Thor, Bruce, and Rocket head out to the New York Sanctum and meet a new friend. 
> 
> (Rocket should not be allowed to own weaponry)

Bleecker Street was neither far nor hard to find. 177 A was a bit difficult to find - this home base of wizards was probably intentionally wedged between businesses, intending to look unassuming. The most surprising thing by far, Thor thought, was the man already outside 177 A, banging on the door.

It wasn't Wong, that's for sure. He wore a black leather jacket and jeans, not the robes the wizards wore, and he didn't look Asian anyway. Wong was an Asian name, wasn't it? Was it ignorant for Thor to make that assumption?

"Uh, hello?" Rocket, walking ahead of everyone (they guessed bringing Rocket would be no problem. The New Yorkers would likely be surprised by nothing at this point), stopped just behind the mysterious man. "Who the hell are you?"

He paused in his knocking, left hand freezing upon the thick doors. His chestnut-brown hair reached down past his shoulders and was wavy and surprisingly glossy. When he turned his head, it brushed softly over the shoulder of his leather jacket.

There was something familiar about this man. Thor  _knew_  those unearthly silver eyes, he knew that long and structured face, the full lips and prominent nose. But there was no way he could place who this was. Nor did Thor think he actually knew who this was and how to address him. So instead, he stepped up to where Rocket stood and gestured at the door to 177 A Bleecker Street.

"You're trying to get in too?" Thor questioned. The man stared, eyebrows twitching.

"You're Thor," He responded. His voice was so soft and melodic that Thor almost sighed aloud. "And Bruce Banner."

"Yeah, and I'm Rocket." The rabbit to Thor's right raised his hand and got the man's attention back. "I already asked, who the hell are you? And what are you doing trying to get in there?"

The man pursed his lips, debating whether or not to say anything. "Name's Marshall. I know these people. Vaguely. Kind of. What is a group of super-people doing here?"

It was clear the four of them were there for the same purpose: to meet with the wizards. "You know why," Thor said, to ensure that. Marshall nodded. He briefly glanced down and up the street before knocking on the door once more.

"One of you want to break down the door?" He suggested. "The last Keeper may have..." The  _disintegrated_ was implied. Thor went to do as Marshall suggested, but Rocket has already pulled out a few small explosives and the excitement on his face made Thor back down.

"Stand back, pretty boy." Rocket raised them up while Marshall stepped back towards the rest of them. Rocket tossed the ball-shaped things up to the door. They exploded on impact, each of them connecting to the springs on the doors and blowing them flat into the entryway of the building.

"That's new," Marshall muttered. Rocket nodded proudly and sauntered on in, Bruce following behind him. Thor glanced once more at Marshall, trying to figure him out, before brushing past and following the others.

The inside of 177 A Bleecker Street was somewhat, disappointingly, ordinary. The  _somewhat_  was due to the beautiful, old staircase, wide and a classic Vanderbilt-kind-of style. The rest of the place, though, was empty and unassuming as the outside was.

"Hello?" Rocket yelled. His rough voice echoed throughout the entryway and all the way up the stairs. Bruce hissed at him and tiptoed forward.

"We don't know who's in here," He whispered. Thor couldn't argue with that, but Marshall passed by all of them and launched himself up the stairway, three steps at a time. He was naturally quiet, but still his heeled boots made some noise.

"Who guards this Sanctum?" He called. It wasn't quite at the volume of Rocket's shout, but it was loud anyway. Thor followed him without a word. He trusted his guy's judgment, for some reason. And who would be here to kill them, after the Dusting? If anyone was even still here, there was no guarantee they would try to kill them. Besides, Thor had Stormbreaker concealed as a pocket-knife in his pocket.

There was no sound in the building as they ascended the stairs and walked down the long hallway. Everything was minimally decorated, at least in the front part of the building. That changed when the hallway opened up to a large room lined with mysterious, magical objects. Thor had been in there before, when Strange talked to him. This time, everything was astray - glass cases shattered, sparkling items across the floor, unknown metal weaponry lodged in the walls and floor. It was as if someone had broken in and had a fight.

"Who guards this Sanctum?" It didn't deter Marshall at all. In fact, he hurried his pace in searching the place. Thor and the rest, again, followed him. He seemed to know what was going on better than them. That alone should've frustrated Thor, but at this point, he wanted any help they could get.

Their next destination was the library. Thor already worried about Rocket being in there, knowing he'd try to set something on fire, but Bruce kept a close eye on him. Marshall, again, paid no mind to them. So Thor took a moment to look around at the books, realizing some of them looked familiar. A little  _too_  familiar...

Marshall stopped so suddenly Thor went slamming into him, almost sending him flying forward before he was able to grab Marshall's shirt and hold him.

"Sorry," Thor grunted. "What is it?"

Marshall glanced at him with unnervingly bright eyes and walked forward with purpose. Those eyes were familiar, Thor realized for the first time, because they looked so much like Loki's had.

"Hello?" Marshall called. He'd seen something. "Are you in charge of this Sanctum?"

"This guy's weird." Rocket grumbled. Thor rolled his eyes and followed after Marshall.

In the very back of the library, reading a book intently, was what  _must've_  been Wong. He had earbuds in, loudly listening to Beyoncé, unknowing of everything else around. Bruce snorted a laugh at that and leaned against one of the bookshelves while Marshall leaned over the desk Wong sat at and knocked on the surface.

"Oh-!" He shot up in his seat, yanking out the earbuds and automatically waving his hands around. A pair of glowing orange disks sparked at his fists and stayed there, two tiny shields. Marshall had his hands raised in peace, eyes wide, but Thor made no move to attack or defend himself. If his hand clenched a little tighter around Stormbreaker in his pocket, he wouldn't admit it.

"You're..." Wong shattered the shields and took a sigh of relief. His eyes were focused on Thor, either because he was the tallest or because he was the most recognize-able. "You're Thor. And Bruce Banner, and..." He turned then to Marshall, not noticing Rocket on the floor. Wong's expression was wiped of all emotion.

"You're in charge of the Sanctum?" Marshall shifted awkwardly, shoving his hands in his pocket, and peered around the place. "I have not been to one of these in... quite a while. Where has the Ancient One gone?"

That sounded like something right out of Bor's stories. But while Thor tried thinking about who the 'Ancient One' was and how Marshall knew anything about these people, Wong was staring down Marshall with an amazed look.

"Wait a minute." Wong got up from his seat and hurried over to one of the bookshelves, the one Bruce leaned against, and sorted through them. His eyes glanced at Marshall every few seconds, wary. Barely a minute had passed before Wong brought out an ancient, brown leather book. The thing was decayed so much Thor wondered how it even stayed together.

"Did the Ancient One get Dusted?" Marshall asked. His tone portrayed mostly discomfort, not knowing how to react to Wong's amazement at him. "Is that what happened to everyone at this Sanctum, too?"

"No." Wong set the book down on the desk and flipped it open to one specific page, then began to read. "'An informant will come to us at the worst of times. With him will be those who also sensed the end; Our informant will be known as the informant for his extraordinary looks. Brush back his hair and you will see.'"

Wong looked up from the book, eyes narrowed suspiciously. "The Ancient One wrote that nearly a century ago, after you made yourself known." And Wong got out of his seat, approaching Marshall. "Brush back your hair."

"Aah-" Marshall laughed awkwardly, backing away from Wong. "Hah- you can- can't you take my word that I am who I say I am?"

"No." Wong shook his head, deadly serious. "Brush back your hair. Show me what the Ancient One spoke of."

Marshall took a deep breath and glanced around. Everyone was looking at him, of course, but none of them really stared with pressure. At least, Thor wasn't. So Marshall leaned over, sliding one hand through his hair and lifting it as though he was going to tuck it behind his ear.

"An elf." Thor stood straight. "I knew there was something about you - you're an elf."

Wong was running back to the desk, where another old book laid, but Thor had captured Marshall's attention with the force in his voice. "I am the last of my kind here. And I would prefer  _Quendi_."

"You're the historian," Thor realized. "The one that recorded your people's history. My grandfather told me stories about the wars your people made."

"Wait wait," Rocket cut in, knowing enough about the situation now to add to the conversation. "I know  _Thor_  is old, how old are  _you_  to be able to live through the wars this idiot's grandfather talked about?"

Marshall seemed amused by that, biting back a chuckle, and shifted his weight from foot to foot. Wong was still searching through the book. "I have lost count of my age a long time ago," He admitted. "Though I must admit, my kind live forever, and I am old now even by those standards."

"Found it!" Wong nearly cut off Marshall, pointing down at the page he'd stopped at. Though upon reading it, it was obvious whatever was written there wasn't good. "Oh. Oh no."

"What?" Thor turned as Wong ran past again, frantic. "Wong? What is it?"

He was silent, still, for a while. His eyes scanned the page desperately, looking for different answers, different words. Thor had some idea to what it might be, from his thinking about his grandfather's stories earlier, but he wasn't positive that's what Wong was reading.

"Hey, knock knock, wizard." Rocket hopped up on the desk and sat on the edge of it. "What's the book say?"

"The solution," Wong said. His voice was strangely empty, still trying to wrap his mind around it. "The Sorcerer Supreme had written of the solution, should the universe end."

A pause. Thor decided to speak up. "Which is?"

Wong raised his head and made direct eye contact with Marshall. "Only you can answer this: where did the Rings of Power end up?"


	3. The Meeting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm back two days later what's up guys how is everyone doing?
> 
> In this chap: Avengers board meeting feat. Wong? Yeah that's about right. Marshall is Edgy as Hell y'all better watch out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's short again sorry :(( the next one will probably be shorter but it's a transition chapter so the /real/ action starts soon!

Thor returned to the Avengers Tower with two more friends and a plan. Rocket returned with a mysterious stolen knife.

It was clear the team had lost almost all hope. They'd relocated to the Avengers Tower as a home base, instead of Wakanda, so they could both survey the land surrounding them and be quickly informed should something else happen. Shuri remained in Wakanda to help her own people, which made enough sense. But there were so few of them now. Tony and Rhodes day together in the healing ward, Steve sat alone at the bar and Nat wandered the place, looking for something to do. Nebula was hiding in the rafters somewhere. Thor wished someone there would be at least... actually, asking for happiness was too much to ask. Even Rocket fiddled with his knife silently, not shooting sarcastic comments at everyone. However, obviously, those who remained were surprised and somewhat pleased to find a few new members.

"Who're they?" Nat approached them first, hand on her belt. No doubt there was a knife hidden there.

"Friends," Thor raised his hands, glancing back at Wong and Marshall, who's eyes were glowing like a preying cat. "Get everyone in the living room. I have a solution to our problem."

"Solution?" Nat asked, already backing away to gather their few. Bruce, with Rocket on his shoulder, headed into the living room directly to their right and sat on the couch. "Be right back."

It didn't take long to get everyone together - there were only ten of them. Thor leaned against the wall perpendicular to the couch, not far from Marshall, who hid in the corner, arms crossed. Rocket was lighting up a piece of paper with a lighter he probably stole. Nat and Steve sat side by side, pressed up against Bruce. Nebula stood solitary behind the couch and Tony and Rhodes sat in chairs a few feet away. Wong didn't bother waiting for everyone to settle in, and he certainly didn't preface himself with any small talk.

"I have a solution," He started, voice low and careful, like he was delivering the formula for an explosive. "But it relies on Marshall's compliance and all of your participation."

At Marshall's mention, nearly everyone turned their heads to look over the stranger. "Who's he?" Rhodes nodded at him. Marshall quirked an emotionless smile. "Our solution relies on some guy we've never met? Is he a wizard too?"

Marshall studied Rhodes with narrowed, feral eyes. "I am not a wizard."

"Then you are?" Steve prodded.

"Quendi." Marshall dipped his head.

"He's an elf," Thor leaned away from the wall and uncrossed his arms. All eyes turned to him. "And his people have the plans for tools that can stop Thanos and bring back the Dusted."

"Well," Nat gestured to Wong, "Go on."

Wong nodded and opened his book, to whatever the Sorcerer Supreme had written in there. "As I said," He began again. "Marshall will bring a few of us to Alfheim, to Aman, where his people will bring us plans for great Rings that, when combined, can do as Thor said. Reverse the Dusting."

" _What_? Seriously?" Steve sat up and glanced behind the couch at Marshall, who already looked exhausted.

"If my people comply."

"If-  _if_?" Bruce stuck in. "No, they're going to have to. Half the universe is dead. More than that, with the disasters  _caused_  by the damn Snap. They have to help us."

Marshall lowered his head again, silent. Thor didn't want to ask about that. Maybe he wasn't on good terms with his people?

"Who'll go to Alfheim?" Rhodes turned the conversation back. "You said a few of us have to go. Who's going?"

Wong thought about this for a moment, but he didn't get to speak his thoughts. Marshall spoke up. "Thor, Black Widow, and the Iron Man will come with me. As well as Rocket. None among us know inter-space flight save him."

Almost immediately, voiced jumped out in confusion. The loudest was Steve's, yelling, "I'm more than ready to go!" While Rhodes instinctively placed a hand on Tony' leg. Protectively, Thor thought.

"Everyone shut up!" Nat shouted over all the chaos. She was always particularly good at ending arguments. Everyone, of course, stopped their yelling. Nat smirked for half a second as a 'thank you'. "As flattered as I am, why have you chosen me, a sentient hamster, a god you just met, and- well,  _Tony_." She gestured to the latter, whose head was currently turned down. Thor thought he saw conflict on his face, but it was hard to tell at the angle he was sitting. "And who are you, anyway? You've been nothing but cryptic since you arrived."

There was silent agreement throughout the room, agreement that clearly made Marshall uncomfortable. He cleared his throat and stood straight, away from the wall. "My name is Marshall. Marshall... McLean? I don't remember the surname I've been using recently. I've been in hiding ever since your organization found out about me, but..." He shook his head. Something dark, malicious, settled into his eyes. "The Dusting didn't choose me. That's how I knew to find you."

Thor thought that sounded just as cryptic as before, but it seemed to please Nat somewhat. "And your reasons for choosing us?"

Marshall nodded at that, thinking hard about the correct answer. Or was he? Because he looked as though he knew exactly what he wanted to say. Thor wondered how someone could put off such a strong mysterious energy. "I've done my research, of course." He nodded along, still, to his own statements. "Thor- well, we need someone versed in the ways of my people. Other than me. Since..." A shake of his head. "And Natasha because of your skills in staying hidden. Stark because of his intellect, to discuss the creation of the Rings with their builders. And I already gave a reason for Rocket."

There was a crash to Thor's left. He didn't realize what it was for a second, but it didn't take long to do so. Rhodes' immediate, "Hey, hey, Tony-" made it easy to figure out. Tony was leaving the living room quickly, stumbling away really, and soon after him was Rhodes, always keeping close watch of him. Thor tried not to think about what could be happening.

"He's, uh..." Bruce cleared his throat. "He's got some anxiety. About... space."

Marshall huffed a laugh at that. A laugh? Albeit, it was a bitter one. "I know the feeling. Will he be alright?"

A chorus of honest shrugs swept through the room. It set a chill in Thor's blood, something saddened deeply by the obvious struggle of his teammate. Rhodes' soft voice could be heard just outside, along with Tony's heavy and quick breaths.

"I think you should rethink your team," Thor blurted, despite his effort not to. Marshall turned just his head towards him. "There's no guarantee Tony will be able to do it. He's injured, he's-" Thor gestured towards the door. "I just don't think its a good idea."

Marshall considered this. "No," He said. "He must."

"Why can't..." Nat shifted on the couch. The atmosphere was putting them all on edge. "Why can't you take his place? These are your people. Not to mention how you obviously have the ability to stay hidden - you'd done so even after  _our organization_  found out about you, whatever that means. Why don't you just send one person with you, to ensure the safety of these Rings?"

"No," Marshall answered so quickly he just about cut her off. "We can't rely on my abilities at all. I've picked the people I need."

"But why?" Nat continued on, not one to back down easily. "Why can we not rely on you at all? I mean, you're a stranger, but these are your people."

Marshall was shaking his head again. He was already checked out of the conversation, not willing to say anything else. Thor exchanged a quick glance with Bruce; they were both wary, but not necessarily hostile yet. There was a mutual look of companionship. They had each other's backs.

"Should someone-?" Wong was staring at the doorway still. "Should someone check on them? If Marshall is so determined to have Mr. Stark?"

"I'll go," Thor started out of the room before anyone else could. He wanted to see if Tony was alright, yes, but he also couldn't stand the energy in the living room. Bruce sent a half-smirk as he passed.

Rhodes had one hand on Tony's shoulder and all his attention focused on him. His mechanical legs whirred with every minute movement. Tony, meanwhile, was keeled over against the wall, both arms crossed over his midsection, rasping out staccatoed words.

"Hello," Thor knocked on hand lightly on the wall to gain their attention. "Is everything okay out here?"

There was a pause of genuine wonder, neither of them sure. Then Tony stood upright, stuttered an inward breath, and nodded. Thor thought he saw a determination in his eyes.

"When do we leave?" 


	4. The Journey Begins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm back! It's been a while. This is bit of a transition chapter - i think i said that in the notes of the last chap, but oh well. 
> 
> The Benatar is repaired and the crew starts off on their journey (and also play some board-games).

It was the Wakandans that took up the task of repairing the Guardian's ship.

Shuri, even as busy as she was, was able to add extra protection and certain types of boosters to the craft. By the time their requested team was heading over to Wakanda, it was early finished and an item of pride to Shuri. The Benatar, Rocket said it was called, after some Earth-singer Quill was fond of. Quill said it sounded badass. Thor didn't necessarily  _dis_ agree with that.

"Friends!" Shuri was there to greet them as they exited the plane. Technically, airways were still closed due to the worldwide disasters, but governments had made exceptions for some of the re-formed Avengers. "I have been waiting for you. How was the flight?"

"No trouble," Thor greeted, shaking her hand and bringing her in for a quick hug. "Your hospitality knows no bounds, Queen Shuri."

"Ah, don't call me that." She scowled. "I hate the sound of it. Just bring my brother back, alright? I hate this royalty-leader business."

Thor saw the grief underneath, always hovering right underneath the surface, but he said nothing. He didn't need to; there was a mutual understanding between just about everyone now. So instead, Thor turned to those that'd come with him. "This is Marshall-" He gestured over to the sulking figure still climbing out of the plane. "He's our guide."

"Mr. Marshall," Shuri stuck out her hand in greeting, but Marshall didn't notice through his large yawn; he'd slept on the flight. Shuri lowered her hand. "Thank you for helping us. I hope the Benatar is fixed and up to standards."

"I'm not the pilot," He grumbled, thumbing over his shoulder to Rocket, who was currently trying to talk a Wakandan soldier to letting him "have a look" at his gun. "And I'm not doing this for you."

Shuri didn't look too happy with that answer but let it slide. "So everyone that's going is here?"

"Yes," Thor said, turning to make sure. Nat was by his side, suited and armed already, pulling Tony forward. He'd been almost silent the whole flight, but for some reason, he looked a lot calmer than he had the whole time since he'd gotten back. "Natasha, Tony, Marshall, and- rabbit! Get over here."

Rocket grumbled something under his breath as he stalked over to them, hiking the enormous gun he held over his shoulder. "Yeah, we leaving?"

Shuri gave him a look of odd confusion but decided not to say anything. "Rocket, I presume? It is nice to meet you. I hope the Benatar is flyable."

Rocket looked over Shuri with almost the same look she'd given him and scoffed. "That's alright, I'm not expecting you humans to really know how to repair such a fine piece of work. I mean, you're smart and all, but there's only so much- much- holy  _shit_."

The Benatar, which had been taxiing towards them as they spoke, was finally able to be seen fully. Rocket let out a cry of amazement and ran towards the ship, crawling up inside as soon as it'd parked. Even from outside, Thor could hear him. And it was worthy of the praise, even as someone with so limited knowledge of mechanics and things - the Benatar was shining and polished, lined with strips of glowing vibranium, the new black paint-job giving it an even more elegant appearance. Thor had never seen Shuri's work before, but now he understood the hype.

"How did you-" Tony stepped forward, unsteady but seemingly entranced. He raised one arm to point at the ship and turned his head to Shuri. "She was catastrophically failing when we landed here. How did you repair her with- how did you fix her?"

Shuri smiled and sent a sideways glance at Okoye next to her, who lowered her head to conceal her small smirk too. "I would be happy to tell you everything when you return with the Rings, Stark."

Thor laid a hand on Tony's shoulder, reminded of their mission once again. "Of course," Tony sent back, turning with Thor but glancing over his shoulder once or twice. "All of it."

The inside of the Benatar was just about as beautiful as the outside. All the seating along the walls was leather and sleek, the control base was glowing with the same light as the vibranium on the hull, and the room Thor had woken up in was renovated and sorted, tools in their own shelves against the walls.

"One more thing." Shuri had followed them in and stood at the exit, holding a small, black box. "Earpieces. You'll always have a connection to one another, but not with us on Earth - the connection could not reach that far." She opened it up and passed out the tech. "As long as you're all on the same planet, it should stay connected."

"Thank you, Shuri." Nat smiled gratefully and stuck in her own earpiece. "We won't disappoint."

The rest of them nodded their thanks, all save Marshall, who'd grabbed his earpiece and disappeared. Thor set a hand on Shuri's shoulder, his own nonverbal thanks, and Shuri nodded back and left.

"We ready?" Rocket shouted from the control room. "Let's see how well she flies!"

Thor had to grip the chair to his left to avoid getting tossed to the ground. Fortunately, the exit doors shut quick enough to prevent all of them from being shot out of the ship at a high velocity. Unfortunately, Rocket's reckless flying didn't ease up.

Marshall grumbled from somewhere off to Thor's right. "Lords, I think I'm gonna be sick."

It was a unanimous thought between them all.   
  


\-------------  
  


They had already moved onto board-games.

It was becoming increasingly boring trying to find things to do on such a long flight and that was all they were able to find buried in the ship. Why there were even board games was beyond Thor - the Guardians didn't exactly seem like the board game type.

"Mantis said we should get some," Rocket said when Thor had asked. There was a suppressed sadness on his face, one that Thor knew well. "Then Gamora agreed and we basically had no choice. They said it'd be good bonding, but we never got around to playing them. Go fish."

"This is pointless." Marshall, the receiver of Rocket's  _go fish_ , grumbled something in that language Thor still couldn't quite place. It must've been some form of Elvish, but it was far more archaic than anything he'd heard. It reminded him of how old Marshall really must've been. "Games like these wouldn't supply any real knowledge of another person."

"Except for how much he hates board games," Nat shot back. Then she was prodded by Marshall if she had any fives and the conversation dropped for a few minutes. But it got Thor thinking a little. He wished to know more about Marshall - he already knew the rest of them well enough, even if he'd only met Rocket a week and a half ago. Marshall, though... he was mysterious, that's for sure. He hadn't told them any more than the fact that he  _was_  mysterious, and that he currently went by the name Marshall McLean.

"Say, Marshall," He cleared his throat and grabbed a card from the quickly depleting pile. "What do you think is the best way to get to know someone?"

Marshall thought about it for a moment, but Thor thought, again, that it was simply for the effect of seeming like he was thinking about it. His confident answer proved that thought right. "A hunt, of course."

Rocket snorted. "The hell does that mean?"

Nat let out a giggle too, a suppressed one but a giggle nonetheless. Marshall puffed out his chest a bit a huffed. "It provides clean air to clear the mind, focus, stress, and teamwork.  _That_  is the best way to get to know someone. I know that for sure."

Nat's laugh bubbled up to grow into a snort similar to Rocket's. "Is this your way of saying we should stop at the next planet and take us and our guns on a little hunt?"

"Of course not. Guns ruin the experience."

They all laughed a bit at that. The ridiculousness of it all was clear, but Thor still thought Marshall had a good point. After all, he was 1,500 years old and had experiences of his own. The band of friends he'd had in his childhood and on Asgard were no more, but he certainly could agree with hunting and battling being a surefire way to bring people together.

"I don't think it's a half-bad idea." Thor stuck in after the laughter had settled down again. There were only a few more cards in the middle. Nat and Rocket lifted their heads a little to listen. Marshall and Tony kept theirs on their cards. "The fresh air makes sense. And danger, no matter the source, is truly a way to bring people together. When Asgard was collapsing, my lovable but always mischievous brother actually fought with us against our sister. It's a long story. The point is, people change when their lives are threatened. They look to others to seek protection or to protect."

That required a bit more thinking. Marshall looked to be upset that he hadn't phrased it like that in the first place to avoid everyone laughing at him, but he looked grateful to Thor for taking his side anyway.

"But what is your reasoning, Marshall?" Thor tipped his head to the side, a look he'd seen Loki give hundreds of his unsuspecting victims. Thor still wanted to know something-  _anything,_  about Marshall. Fortunately, this time, his question seemed to reach him.

"I went on many hunts back during... my time." He turned his attention back down to the cards in his hands but his focus was still definitely on his answer. "When one of my brothers suspected they themselves or one of us were drifting away, he'd call for a hunt. For weeks we'd track the cold wilderness for beasts to kill, whether it be a stag or something more... foul."

That answer was still just about as cryptic as all his other ones, but at least now they knew he'd had family at some point. Tony, though, had gotten to his wit's end listening to the mysterious answers.

"Oh, come on," He groaned. "Either give a straight answer or don't give one at all. We all know each other here. We're going however many fucking billions of miles into space. We don't even know your real fucking name."

An uncomfortable pause hung in the air. Marshall stared at Tony with vacant eyes, not knowing what to say.

"This is when you say your real name, idiot." Tony folded his hands over his lap. Marshall cleared his throat uncomfortably and shifted in place.

"I- uh," He started, stumbling over his words. "I have had many names."

"Jesus fucking- your  _birth_  name, maybe?" Tony rolled his eyes, but Thor saw the humor in them had been lost.

Marshall stared down at his lap and swallowed. "It was... my name was Kanafinwë Makalaurë Fëanorian. It has been long, long lost."

Somehow, Thor knew that name. He knew it from his grandfather's stories, that was for sure. But he hadn't a clue who he was and what that all meant. It was constantly on the tip of his tongue, right at the forefront of his brain but never actually revealing itself. It was interminably frustrating.

"Maybe we  _do_  need to go on a hunt," Rocket mumbled, sensing the awkwardness in the room.

Marshall, if he wasn't already checked out before Rocket said that, he certainly was then. "I'm going to find a place to lay down. I'm tired." He set down his cards, all face-up, and stalked off wordlessly.

"Hey! You  _did_  have a five!" Rocket shouted after him. 


	5. The Lost Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> eyyy I'm back! It's been a long while, but I just checked my drafts and found a bunch of stuff I haven't uploaded, sorry :(

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know these are so short but I really can't help a good cliffhanger ;) 
> 
> tw for violence, mentioned but not graphic

They were beginning to become antsy.

Board games wore out quickly, and getting to know each other was a bust - every time someone asked Marshall something personal, he either gave an impersonal answer and left or didn't answer at all. Thor could see Tony was becoming increasingly angry about that, and no wonder, too. He'd risked everything to come on this trip, they all had. And it certainly didn't help that Marshall wasn't willing to tell them anything about himself.

Thor found him (he'd say "found him, one day", but time passed strangely on this ship) in one of the smaller, lower rooms Marshall had often slept in, punching the hell out of a dummy. It must've been used for sparring practice, but Marshall was really going all out on this thing. Thor knocked on the frame of the door after he'd finally punched the dummy in the chest and sent it flying across the room and into a wall.

"Marshall?" Thor kept his voice low and careful. Marshall didn't turn and stood there, in the middle of the floor, hunched over and panting. His shirt was off, but it was dark enough that Thor had trouble seeing much of anything. "Are you alright?"

He went to turn on the lights just as Marshall grabbed his shirt. For a brief moment, Thor saw the expanse of the brutal, nasty scars across his muscled back. There was one all the way down his spine, a wound Thor recognized as something from a long, clean blade. Then the shirt was on, and the gruesome fantasies ended.

"Marshall?"

"What did you see?" Marshall barely let him finish. Still, he didn't turn towards Thor, but his head had turned just a bit. Thor could see nothing more than his right cheek and part of the long scar that ran across his nose. "What did you see?"

"I-" Thor wasn't sure how to answer that. "Something I probably wasn't supposed to. Truthfully."

Marshall sighed and turned fully back to the opposite wall and the dummy on the floor. "Which ones?"

Thor supposed this conversation would seem very odd should Nat or Rocket walk in right then (Tony had an affinity for not being surprised by anything anymore), but he answered (truthfully) anyway. "The long one. Down your spine."

Thor could see the way some of the muscles in Marshall's shoulders tensed and the way he tried to make them not. Thor knew the feeling. He knew about trying to hide tenseness and discomfort, especially if that had something to do with a repressed memory, as it seemed to be with Marshall. What he answered, however, was not at all what Thor expected.

"My older brother gave me that," He whispered. Thor took one minuscule step towards him and stopped. "We got in an argument while sparring. I had turned my back on him for a moment - the last time I did so."

Thor had no idea what had sparked this admission into Marshall's memories, but Thor wasn't about to stop him. It was one of the most personal things he'd told any of them. "Why?"

Context wasn't needed. They both knew what the other was talking about as soon as it was said. "He was worried I'd leave him."

Thor scoffed and immediately wished he hadn't. "And giving you a scar like that would make you stay?"

"It was a threat." Marshall's tone had dropped dangerously low, remembering the memory. "He'd give me more if I  _did_  leave. I couldn't move for days. It hurt so bad, I- I couldn't leave him, then. He was too far gone. I needed to- protect him. From himself."

That gave Thor a little more clarity. Marshall clearly thought he was a bad person - whether it was true or not, Thor could hear it in his voice. He loved this brother, even after he'd injured him badly. That brother must've gone insane. Thor wondered briefly if Marshall had lost a little something, too.

"Then he left me." Marshall moved on without Thor even needing to prompt him. His hands were clenched into fists at his sides. "He was gone, truly. He killed himself and left me. Left me behind. Forever. I don't know what I'm going to do if I see him when we arrive at Alfheim."

Thor glanced at the dummy and pointed. "Hopefully, not that."

Marshall had just enough humor to puff out a weak laugh and finally turned towards Thor. "I just might."

And that was that. Marshall passed by him out of the room and he was gone. 

————————

It must've been a day that passed before Thor heard another thing about Marshall.

He'd been sitting in the control room with Rocket, mindlessly fiddling with the knife he almost always kept on him. Rocket was making gun sound-effects out of the main viewer, into space, not threatening at all. Thor was only vaguely aware of when Nat actually stepped towards them.

"Guys," She got their attention and walked down some of the steps to where they both sat. "I was just talking to Marshall. And..."

The trailing off wasn't because she didn't know how to say what she had to say. Nat was feeling and emotional like any other person, and she seemed flustered right then, but the trailing off was for dramatic effect. To keep them interested. Fortunately, Thor and Rocket were both immediately intrigued. Anything that started with "I was just talking to Marshall" was sure to be good.

"And?" Thor prodded.

"And he was telling me about his past." She took a seat to Thor's right and in front of Rocket. "He was saying all these things about his sons and his brothers. Terrible things. Violent things. And yeah, that's okay and fine - except I don't think he knew he was talking to me."

Thor swapped confused looks with Rocket. "How do you know?" Rocket asked.

Nat shook her head, unsure. "I don't know. But there was something vacant in his eyes. Like... like when you're talking to Tony and see he isn't really listening. But Marshall was..." She shook her head again. It was obvious she was upset by it, even as rock-solid Nat was, so Thor set a hand on her shoulder. She sent him a smile. "He was telling me all about their deaths. Very gruesome deaths. And he was pacing and his expression would change every few seconds - it was very manic. He's looked insane."

That, coupled with the previous day's incident, made Thor more than a little suspicious. He needed to figure out who this guy was before something happened that they were ill-prepared for-

"Well," Rocket shrugged, unusually serious, "if he's freaking out about going home, something pretty terrible must've happened."

 _"My older brother gave me that,"_  Thor remembered. Marshall's back turned to him in that tiny room, the dummy beat to hell, the scars and the threats and the pain in his voice...

"I'll be back." Thor shot to his feet and pocketed his knife. "There's something I need to check."

He was gone before either of them could say anything. This story sounded unbearably familiar. He  _knew_  it. He just needed evidence that he wasn't crazy. 

—————————

The library of the Benatar was  _very_  limited.

Thor wished there were at least more than ten books in the place, but given the crew, it wasn't very surprising. Thor supposed all of the books belonged to Gamora or maybe Mantis — though the latter didn't seem like the type to read.

It was immediately apparent that someone had already gotten a head start on the reading. Tony sat at the back of the library, lounging uncomfortably on the metal chair that resided there. Thor couldn't see the title but it was definitely interesting enough that Tony hardly noticed Thor's loud entrance.

"Tony." Thor knocked on the wall. Tony startled magnificently, shooting up in his seat and shutting the book quickly. "Everything alright?"

Tony relaxed as soon as he saw Thor standing there and set the book down on the table. "Oh, Thor. It's you. What're you doing here?"

Thor glanced at the title of the book;  _"Fixing Your Spacecraft for Dummies"_. Interesting choice. "I wanted to take a look around here. I had a... thought."

Tony chuckled to himself. "A thought? Didn't know you got those."

Thor quirked a smile but saved the laugh for later — he was too focused. He turned to the bookshelf and started sorting through the ten.  _"Taming Your Spacepet"_  and  _"Guide to Human Behavior"_  to name a few. Thor made a mental bookmark to read the latter later. But alas, the book he was looking for wasn't there. Of course, there wasn't much to go off of anyways, but it was disappointing nonetheless.

"Need help with anything?" Tony's voice broke him out of his focus and forced him to turn again. 

"Ah, well..." Thor shrugged. "Truthfully, the book I was looking for is not here. That isn't surprising."

"Sure isn't." Tony got to his feet and slid  _"Fixing Your Spacecraft for Dummies"_  back into the shelf. "But I was only reading that to keep myself busy. I can look up whatever you need, FRIDAY has the whole internet in the palm of her hand. Figuratively, of course."

Thor lit up a bit. Of course Tony would have the answer to his problem, he always did if technology was involved. "I don't know if your machine would have this one, though," He pointed out, "As it is an Asgardian book of histories and mythologies."

Tony slid his phone out of his pocket, clicked a few things, and brought up a holographic search bar. "Try me."

Thor, though a bit confused by this Earth tech, lifted his hands to type out the title. He hoped he still remembered it - it  _was_  so long ago when grandfather Bor had read those stories to him and Loki. Loki would've remembered the title, that's for sure. It was something that slid right off the tongue, something starting with an  _S_. The Sli... Sli... Sil...?

The ship lurched. Thor was thrown into the bookshelf and was just able to grab Tony before he went flying through the air, too, but his phone crashed to the ground and the hologram receded. The lights flickered overhead for a moment. Thor could hear Natasha screaming their names in the distance.

"Natasha!" Thor called back. Tony was alright, he made sure of that before running out into the hall. "What's going on? What did we hit?"

Natasha rounded the corner and nearly sent Thor flying again. "Not a hit. Another ship. Escape pod or something. Someone's trying to board!" 


End file.
